The Koops in Milwaukee: Halloween!

It's been about three years since we have really celebrated Halloween, so we tried to really do it up this year! First, came the explanation of what trick or treating was. Aiden, as always, had an abundance of questions leading to the ultimate question of 'why do you trick or treat?' And the final answer of, 'to get candy.' His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he realized the simplicity of trick or treating - free candy if you ask.

The festivities began the Friday before with a Halloween Parade at school. The weather was nice, so the kids were allowed to walk around the neighborhood. Who should lead the parade, but the child who has never trick or treated before - Aiden (aka Darth Vader). He was all smiles. Jacob was pretty pumped about it too. It was a great sight to see and I got the warm fuzzies of being back home to celebrate this event.

Saturday was designated the day to carve the pumpkins, but before diving into that project, we did a trial run of trick or treating. Downtown Elmhurst was opening up the businesses for trick or treating and I think the whole town came down. It was a bit crazy. The boys went from store to store collecting their loot and at one point I couldn't get in with them, so I waited outside. Big mistake. Suddenly, a 7 year old vampire was at my side with a member of the Lightning McQueen pit crew. Through tightly gripped plastic teeth, Jacob looked at me and scolded me - "You must hold Jeb's hand!" Could it be that I just got yelled at by a 7 year old? No, I must have heard wrong. On to the next store. This time the little vampire took both Tom and I aside and gave a little lecture of holding Jeb's hand at all times. Yes, just when you think you've got it all figured out as a parent, your kid tells you you're doing it all wrong.

We made it home without losing McQueen (phew!) and got out the pumpkins. No one wanted to use the templates, so Tom and I listened intently to our junior pumpkin designers and carved to our hearts content. Jacob insisted on doing his own and, thanks to the kiddie knife from Pampered Chef, we didn't lose any fingers.

Sunday was the designated day to trick or treat by the city of Elmhurst. And it all started at 3:30. A scary vampire, Darth Vader, and a Lightning McQueen Pit Crew memberall took off with daddy to join the neighborhood entourage of dads and kids begging for candy. The kids came back loaded down with goodies and very excited! We had dinner with some friends and took off soon after finding Jeb trying to take a nap on the stairs. The day had taken it's toll, but it was so exciting.

The candy count? 110 peices on average per boy. We all know 25% goes to mom and dad...or is it 50%? Happy Halloween!!